Some folks we know who write blogs cover a variety of topics and some are athlete-types who write mostly about their training and racing exploits. Neither Greg nor I have much to write about in terms of athletic exploits lately aside from the odd bike ride or run. But I have been thinking about training/racing lately so I thought I'd jot down a few thoughts.
I surprised myself quite a bit by my lack of interest/motivation in racing post-Kai's arrival. I had big plans that never really came to fruition. In fact, it took me 16 months to show up at the starting line of a race again. I never figured that. But I also never figured how demanding breast feeding would be in terms of emotional energy, physical energy, and time. I also never expected to be so incredibly invested in how one tiny creature spent every moment of his day and how I really didn't want to be on a 4 hour bike ride while he was cooing and smiling at home. This time feels different. I know I am only 16 weeks pregnant and alot can, and likely will, change b/tw now and when "Sibs" is born but at the moment I think about training and getting fit ALOT. It is probably just b/c I can't really train right now.
I'm still riding my bike, swimming occasionally, doing lots of yoga, push ups and sit ups and running. Well, sort of. My runs lately are a combination of running, walking and walking lunge squats (don't know what else to call them). They are incredibly painful and leave my relaxin-infused legs wobbly and shaking but they are an attempt to retain some semblance of muscular strength. They are also known as the "mommy walk" b/c Kai has added them to his repertoire of funny walks, alongside "silly walk" "fast walk" and "penguin walk." When he decides to do "mommy walk" beside me while I squat, he squats lower and for longer than I do, and with considerably less effort. What I'd give for toddler thighs right now!
Before I got pregnant with Kai I raced a bit. In the months preceding his conception I completed a high altitude trek in Peru, the Hawaii 1/2 Marathon, Cycle to the Sun (a 36 mile road ride from sea level to 10,000 feet up the Heleakala Volcano), and the Mountain Man Off-Road Triathlon where Greg smoked me in the swim, my run was more pathetic than usual, and (now I will toot my own horn as that is what athlete bloggers do), I rocked the bike. I was one of only two women to go under one hour for the mountain bike portion of the course and I nearly caught Greg ;-) . So, with these races in very recent memory and a steady diet of 10 years of pretty regular racing, I was content to exercise gently, bob in the ocean, and lie in my hammock during my pregnancy with Kai. This time around I am well aware that I am not the spring chicken I was during my last pregnancy and am chomping at the bit to do some long, hard workouts and feel the kind of satisfying exhaustion that only extreme physical effort can bring. But I also know, as I never could have known the last time I was pregnant, that there is a kind of soul destroying exhaustion lying ahead for me. The kind that comes from being awoken every two or so hours, every night, with no end in sight. It is the adventure race with no sleep, no finish line and no teammates (husbands are wonderful but they are missing two crucial body parts). So, I have written this post for that moment in the future when I feel like I just can't take that step out the door to go for that run or bike ride. Remember the endorphins, remember the adrenaline, remember, remember, remember.....
1 comment:
Great post Louise!!! And don't worry, you'll still be the amazing athlete you are, during and after this pregnancy! Remember the sleepless nights don't last forever :-)
Post a Comment